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210 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
bureaucracy
system of organization and control that is based on hierarchical authority, job specialization, and formalized rules
hierarchical authority
chain of command where people at the top have authority over the people in the middle and so on

efficient because reduces conflict
job specialization
each person has only one job to do and they get really good at it

efficient becuase each person concentrates on a specific job
formalized rules
standardized procedures and regulations by which bureaucracy is forced to conduct operations

efficient because enable workers to make quick decisions
cabinet departments
15 of them

head of each department is its secretary (except for department of justice--led by attorney general)

responsible for general knowledge area and have operating units (bureau, agency, divisions, service)

part of the president's cabinet
independent agencies
same as cabinets just narrower area of responsibility

ex: CIA and NASA

could be departments but would look bad (putting NASA in department of defense looks like its all military
regulatory agencies
Congress creates them when they recognize the importance of close regulation of an economic activity

could be done by Congress but requires moer attention

issue regulations and judge whether organizations have followed the
government corporations
charge clients for service but get federal funding

directors appointed by president with senate approval

ex: postal service
presidential commissions
give advice to president

some are permanent like Commission on Civil Rights

some are temporary and disband after making recommendations on an issue
types of federal employees
professionals--give expertise to solve problems

service workers--perform tasks like delivery of mail

middle and top managers--supervise work of various agencies
merit system
when employees are hired based on tests, experience, and education

intended to protect public from biased administrative practices (partisanship)
downsides to federal employment
underpaid in comparison to private sector

can form labor unions but they can't strike or they get fired

can't hold key positions in campaigns
Graded Service job ranking
federal employees have levels of employment (GS-1 through GS18)

they rise through the ranks as they work there longer and get more experience

higher levels get paid more
Taft-Harley Act
prohibits federal workers striking and if they do they can get fired
Hatch Act
prohibits federal employees from holding key positions in election campaigns
Merit Service Protection Board
handles appeals of civil servants who have been fired or face disciplinary action
Office of Personnel Management
handles hiring and classification of federal employees
powers granted to bureaucracy by constitution
none
primary function of administrative agencies
policy implementation
policy implementation
carrying out decisions made by Congress, president, and courts

sometimes make policy by determining how they are followed out
ex: made Bell company open networks to AT&T for cheaper than what they charged retail customers to promote competition

cheif way they exercise real power
secondary function of administrative agencies
delivery of services

sometimes determines policy
ex: FBI pursue organized crime more than white collar crime becuase they want to not becuase they are told to
patronage system
give bureaucratic management positions to people based on good sense, not necessarily experience

top administrators should be in office for short periods of time to ensure influx of new ideas
spoils system
placing political friends in government office to reward them for support
neutral competence
goal of merit-based bureaucracy

competent because employees are hired on basis of skills

neutral because employees are not partisen and do work for everybody, not just president or a specific political party
executive leadership system
strengthened presidency as a means of coordinating bureaucracy's activities to make them more efficient

overcome agency boundaries

can potentially give president too much leverage over bureaucracy and limits the checks that Congress has on executive branch
ways the president uses executive leadership system
Office of Management and Budget

Executive Office of the President
Office of Management and Budger
gives president authority to coordinate annual budget
Executive Office of the President
oversees actions of agencies on the president's behalf
agency point of view
bureaucratic administrators look only only for their agency's point of view
power of expertise
essential to developing public policy

bureaucracies give advice and guidance to Congress
power of clientelle groups
groups whose interest align with a specific agency

put pressure on Congress to give hunding and support to their agencies
power of friends in high places
sometimes agencies resources can help elected officials, and then the officials help the agencies
efficiency of bureauccracy
bureaucracies often more efficient than private organizations
ex: reitrement agencies, health care

sometimes efficiency is a bad standard
ex: FAFSA--if they did it on who turned in their shit first it would suck so they have to be inefficient and judge each application individually
bureaucratic accountability
degree to which bureaucrats are held accountable for the power they exercise

primarily watched by oversight function
ways to exercise oversight function
reorganization of bureaucracy

presidential appointments

executive budget
presidential appointments
president can appoint head of agencies, etc to keep them in line

downside is that pres can't keep track of all appointees and some of them have little knowledge of the agency they head
executive budget
watched by the Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the President
Executive Office of the President
holds the Office of Management and Budget
Office of Management and Budget
no agency can issue regulation or propose legislation without OMB verification

assigns each agency a budget limit
Congressional control over bureaucracy
mostly through authorizing funds--Government Accountability Office and Congressional Budget Office

sunset law
Government Accountability Office
monitors whether policies are being implemented as Congress intended
Court control over bureaucracy
judges can order agency to change its application of the law
ex: black farmer showed that the department of agriculture gave more money to white farmers so the courts told them to even it out
bureaucracy holding itself responsible
whistle blowing

demographic representativeness
whistle blowing
reporting instance of official mismanagement

whistle blowers sometimes provided with monetary rewards

doesn't happen often becuase whistle blowers are afraid of retaliation
demographic representativeness
having administrative positions in the bureaucracy would represent accurate opinions of the public

doesn't really work becuase they would just work for their own agency, not their demographic
grassroots party
built from the bottom up with organizations at the local, state, and national levels

membership open to all eligible voters
party reallignment
when parties remake themselves to support new policies and philosophies
party identification
when a certain sector of the public tends to vote with a certain party (young voters tend to support the party that 'rises from the dust' and challenges the status quo)
split ticket
casting a ballot on which their vote for each office is divided

voters don't just vote for democrats, they vote for republicans in some offices
partisan voting
voting strictly for a single party
prospective voting
voter chooses a candidate on the basis of what the candidate promises to do
retrospective voting
based on a judgment about past performance

more common form of issue voting
two-party system
having only two major parties to chose from

happens because we have single-member districts
multiparty system
more than two parties are represented in government

usually with proportional representation
single-member districts
when we elect people in districts and the percentage of the vote there rather than the percentage of vote as a whole in the U.S.

discourages minor parties
proportional representation
seats in legislature are given out according to the party's share of the popular vote

encourages minor parties
seeking the center
when parties have really broad stances on issues so they can get the extreme vote and the moderate vote

nobody wants to give the entire moderate vote to the other side

moderate voters make up most of the voting so ideologies that have moderation are the most successful
party coalition
groups and interest that support a party
Democratic coalition
underdogs--ex:blacks, union members, poor, jews, minorities, etc
republican coalition
mainly middle class white protestants

strongest in suburbs and regions where traditional values and lower taxes are most pronounced
minor parties in the US
formed to promote policies that followers believe are not adequately represented by either party

minor parties disappear quickly because they bring the issues to the attention of the major parties and then they take a stance on it--either way they serve their purpose
single-issue parties
parties formed around a single issue of overriding interest to their supporters
ex: Prohibition party

usually disband when their issue has been resolved or is less important
factional parties
when internal conflict causes a major party to break up into pieces
ex: Bull Moose Party
ideological parties
characterized by ideological committment to a borad and radical philosophical position
ex: socialist workers party, green party
party oganizations
local, state, national level of party support

their job is to recruit candidates, raise money, develop policy positions, and canvass for votes
nomination
selection of the individual who will run as the party's candidate in the general election
primary election/direct election
puts nomination in the hands of the voter
closed primary
participation is limited to voters registered or declared at the polls as member of the party whose primary is being held
open pirmary
allows independednt and voters of either party to vote in a party's primary

voters cannot participate in both parties primaries
blanket primary
single primary ballot listing both republican and democratic candidates by office

voters don't have to vote along party lines for primaries
local party organization
conduct registration drives, send mailing and hand out leaflets, and help get out the vote

most local campaigns not funded
what are the only two elections contested nationally?
presidency and vice-presidency
state party organization
day-to-day operations appointed by central committee--often the party's leading politician

work at fundraising and voter registration
national party oreganization
parties national conventions meet periodically so usually just set site of presidential nominating convention and rules governing selection of delegates

day-to-day handled by national chairperson chosen by national committee

RNC and DNC run training for candidates, raise money, seek madia coverage, conduct issue and group research, help state and local parties
hard money
goes directly to the candidate and can be spent as he or she chooses
soft money
cannot b ehanded over directly to candidate but the party could use the money they have to support party activites that directly benefit a specific candidate

now banned
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act
banned soft money

can be got around with 527 groups
527 groups
can legally engage in issue advocacy which lets them attack candidates
money chase
candidates spend basically their whole political life trying to raise money for their compaigns
hired guns
a candidates team of experts on how to run their campaign

include consultants, pollsters, media producers, etc
packaging a candidate
highlighting aspects of the candidate's partisanship, policy, personal backgroung, and personality that are the most attractive to voters
air wars
candidate's use of televised ads

candidates use press to get their message across for free

televised debates also attract large and attentive audiences
web wars
candidate websites and email instead of paper mail

disadvantages are that email is much easier to ignore than commercials or regular mail
voter turnout
the proportion of adult citizens who actually vote in a given election

lower in midterm congressional elections

registration requirement, frequency of election, and lack of difference between political parties contribute to low voter turnout
registration
name must be on an official list of eligible voters before they can vote

turnout in US election declined steeply after registration was implemented
problems with registration
times and location are not widely publicized

eligibility can be difficult to prove
motor voter law
requires states to permit people to resiter to vote when applying for a drivers license and when applying for benefits at state offices

citizen must take time to fill out an application form so kind of sucks
problem with frequency of elections
americans asked to voite 2 or 3 times more often than Europeans which increases their apathy to voting
problem with party differences in voting
parties have too broad of platforms so difficult to tell the difference between the two

if not enough of a choice difference, people don't want to vote
apathy in voting
general lack of concern for politics
civic duty in voting
belief that you have an obligation to participate in public affairs
alienation in voting
sense of personal powerlessness in government

the notion that government is unresponsive to or uncaring of citizens

people think that officials pay no attention to their subset in society
problem with age in voting
young people don't vote as much
typical voters
ppl with top level of education are twice as likely to vote becuase their personal acheivement contributes to an interest in public affairs and the belief that they can make a difference

americans in the bottom thir income group are more likely than those in the top third to believe that election outcomes have no appreciable effect on their lives
how to become a federal judge
nominated and appointed to office by president, but must be confirmed by majority vote in senate

no age, residency, or citizenship requirements to become a federal judge

don't have to have legal training

serve until death or retirement
jurisdiction
authotiry of court to hear cases of a particular type
original jurisdiction
authority to be the first court to hear a case
appellate jurisdiction
authority to review cases that have already been heard in lower courts and are appealed to a higher court by the losing party
appellate courts
have appellate juridiction
primary function of the judiciary
to interpret the law in such a way that rules made in the past can be applied reasonably in the present
precedent
judicial decision that serves as a rule for settling subsequent cases of a similar nature

lower cases are expected to follow precedent and resolve cases in a similar way to how higher courts have in the past
writ of certiorari
losing party in a lower court case explains in writing why the case should be heart by the Supreme Court

4 of 9 justices must decide that accept the case
solicitor general
high ranking justice department official who serves as the government's lawyer in supreme court cases

his request to grant a writ of centiorari is usually granted by justices
types of cases the supreme court hears
raise major constitutional issues

affect lives of many americans

address issues that are being decided inconcsistently by the lower courts

involve rulings that conflict with a previous supreme court decision
written briefs in the supreme court
contains each sides complete arguement

more important than oral arguments
judicial converence
attended by all 9 justices

they discuss and vote on the case
decision of supreme court
indicates which side the corut supports and by how large a margin (how many judges voted for it)
opinion
explains the reasons behind the decision

most important party of a supreme court ruling because it contains the legal reasoning
majority opinion
when a majority of the justices agree on the legal reasoning behind the decision

not always because sometimes the majority agree on the decision but not the reasoning
plurality opinion
when there is not a majority opinion, the plurality opinion present that view held by most of the justices who side with the winning party
consurring opinion
a separate view written by a justice who votes with the winning side but doesn't have to same reasoning behind it as other judges
dissenting opinion
written by judges who don't agree with who won to explain the reasons why they thought that party should have lost
who writes the opinion
if the cheif justice if part of the majority then he decides (usually given to self in important cases)

if not, then the senior member of the majority decides
per curiam
unsigned decision of the supreme court that states the facts of the case and the courts ruling
district courts
lowest courts

at least one in every state and up to 4 in some states

judges appointed by the president with consent of the senate

only courts where judges hear testimony

most federal caess end with the district courts decision
court of appeals
where cases go after being appealed at the district level

do not use juries

base decision on a review of lower court records

appellate judges are supervisors in the legal system and review trial court decisions and correct what they think are legal errors

13 in the US covering 3-9 states with 4-26 judges serving but each case usually heard by a panel of 3

each circuit monitored by a supreme court justice
the only place to have their own court of appeals
washinton dc
US court of appeals for the federal circuit
specializes in appeals involving patents and internation trade
special US courts
US claims court (cases where US gov is being sued for damages)

US court of international trade (handles caess inolving appeals of US customs office rulings)

US court of military appeals (hears appeals of military courts-martial)
state courts
each state decides for itself the way that judges are chosen (appointment or election or merit plan)
merit plan of choosing judges
governor picks judges based on a list of acceptable candidate provided by a judicial selection commission

judge gets periodically reviewed by the voters
politcal power throught appointing the supreme court
can be appointed based on political standing

then influence policy for years to come on the basis of that party

this means presidents appoint according to their political party
senatorial courtesty
applies to lower court nominees

means that if a senator from the state in which a vacancy has arisen should be given a say in the nomination of the senator is of the same party as the president
presidents role in appointing lower court judges
screening nominees is often delegated to deputy attorney general

senatorial courtesy
role of partisanship in judge nominations
presidents chose members of their own party

even though the judges rule on legal basis and a political one, partisanship can influence judicial decisions
role of things besides partisanship in appointing judges
usually have prior judicial experience

white males usually dominate

democrats tend to appoint more women and minorities than republicans--supreme court is less demographically representative than lower courts
restrictions on the court's power
courts can't issuing a ruling on anything unless presented with a court

ruling restricted to who would follow them voluntarily unless the court issues a mandate that everybody must

courts must make decisions based on current laws and cannot create them itself
types of law
civil law

criminal law

procedural law
civil law
governs realtions between private parties

ex: divorce, business contracts, property transactions
criminal law
deals with acts that the government defines as illegal and that can result in a fine, imprisonment, or other punishment

government is always a party in criminal law case and the other party is the individual that allegedly committe the crime
procedural law
refers to rules that govern the legal process

ex: miranda rights
contraints to the courts
constitution

legislative statutes

precedents
constitutional constraint on the courts
judges must uphold whatever it says in the constitution first and foremost
contraint of legislative statutes on the courts
judges must work within applicable law and cannot prosecute beyond the extent of the law
statutory law
law enacted by a legislative body
administrative law
derived from statutory law but swet by government agencies
legal precedents constraint on the courts
courts follow previously set examples
public opinion and its effect on the courts
courts stay close enough to public opinion to avoid massive resistance to their decisions
interest groups and their effect on the courts
interest groups file lawsuits to get the precendent they want becuase law isn't likely to change in their favor through legislation

amicus curiae
amicus curiae
"friend of the court"

brief in which an enterest group presents its views on a case in which it is not one of the parties directly involved
ways congress can change the court
can control size of court system

can rewrite laws that they think the court has misinterpreted
strict constructionism
says judicial officer should apply a narrow interpretation of the law
loose constructionism
says that a judicial officer can apply an expansive interpretation of the law
judicial review
power of courts to declare legislation to be unconstitutional
legitimacy in the courts
tauthority of the judiciary in a political system based in part on the principle of majority rule
judicial restraint
judges should work closely within the wording of the law, follow precedent, and defer to decisions made by lesgilature

basically says public issues should be decided by legislature and not courts

believed that restraint means more public compliance with the ruling
judicial activism
says judges should actively interpret the constitution, statutes, and precedents in light of established principles when legislature ignores those principles or rights

says judges must prevent majorities from working through legislators to violate legitimate rights of the minority

protects the people from the government's neglect
political socialization
learning process by which people acquire their political opinions, beliefs, and values
process of political socialization
influenced heavily by childhood learning
age-cohort tendency
a significant change in the pattern of political socialization is typically concentrated among younger citizens
agents of socialization
family
schools
mass media
peers
political leaders
church
effect of families on socialization
has most of the attention of young children

family contributes to basic orientation that have political significance
ex: equality, individualism
effect of schools on socialization
build support for the nation (teach pledge, GW, MLK, etc)

contribute to sense of social equality
effect of mass media on socialization
themes and images that dominate media affect perception of the world
effect of peers on socialization
reinforce what a person already believes

people are unwilling to deviate too far from what their peers think
effect of political leaders and institutions on socialization
leaders guide opinions of the public
effect of churches on socialization
shape social and political positions

people take religious values and relate them to politics
lliberals
those who say that government should do more to solve US problems

say government ought not to support raditional values at the expense of less conventional ones
conservatives
feel government should be sparing in its programs

feel government should use its power to uphold traditional values
libertarians
are reluctant to use government either as a means of economic redistribution or as a means of favoring particular social values
populists
would use government both for economic redistribution and to guard traditional values
religion effecting politics
as a typical group, more conservative

religious right=most powerful religious force in the country right now
class effecting politics
people tend to group together with their economic class and people of similar employment

poorer people like social welfare programs
region effecting politics
red states and blue states (red=conservative)
race and ethnicity effecting politics
usually a result of differing economic situations and histories

black less likely to trust police and courts
gender effecting politics
generally differ on topics like military forst, abortion rights, social welfare, and education with women being more liberal
age effecting politics
elderly tend to oppose increases in public school funding but support increases in social security

stems from face that young people are served by different faction of government than elderly
crosscutting cleavages
when individuals belong to more than one group and have contact with many opinions

encourage individuals to appreciate differences which leads them to more moderate differences
2 characterisitcs of an interest group
1) organized membership
2)pursuit of policy goals that stem from its members shared interest
economic groups
interest groups that exist primarily for economic purposes
organizational edge of economic groups
access to financial resources

corporations especially becaues they don't have to charge money to belong because they make money from business income

private goods and material incentives are reasons to join
private goods
benefits that a group can grant directly to the individual member
types of economic groups
business groups
labor groups
agricultural groups
professional groups
business groups
concentrate activities on policies that touch directly on business interests (tax, tarriffs, regulatory decisions)

have advantage of the size factor
labor groups
goal is to promore policies that benefit worker in general and union members in particular

unions are used to organize service and public employees
agricultual groups
don't always agree on issues (small and large farms as well as specialty associations)
professional groups
promote or oppose legislation according to interests of their represented group (AMA and doctors)
citizens groups
noneconomic groups

frawn together by purposive incentves
purposive incentives
opportunities to promote a cause in which they believe

have a hard time acquiring resources necessary for organization

offer collective goods as incentive to membership
collective goods
benefits that belong to everybody (public parks)
free-rider problem
individuals can receive the benefit of a public good even if they don't contribute to the group's effort
types of citizens groups
public interest groups
single-issue groups
public interest groups
claim to represent broad interest of society as a whole

problem is that the issues they target are those the leader wants to
single-issue groups
organized to influence policy in just one area

EX: NRA

environmental groups could be a single issue or a public interest
ideological groups
have a broad agenda that derives from a philosophical or moral position

ex: Christian coalition, national organization for women
lobbying
efforts by groups to inluence public policy through contract with public officials
inside lobbying
based on group efforts to develop and maintain close "inside" contacts with policymakers
lobbying congress
ensures that a group's bill even gets on the agenda

also educate policymakers on the facts
lobbying executive agencies
can influence policy decisions at the implementation and initiation stages

groups assist agencies by providing support when their programs and budgets are renewed by congress and the president
lobbying the courts
can influence selection of federal judges to support their political positions

also use lawsuits to influence courts when they can't make a difference through legislation
iron triangles
consists of a small and informal but relatively stable set of bureaucrats, legislator, and lobbyist who seek to develop policies beneficial to a particular interest

ex: department of agriculture, farm groups like associate milk producers, and agriculture committees of congress
issue networks
an informal grouping of officials, lobbyists, and policy specialists brought together temporarily by their shared interest in a particular policy probem
outside lobbying
involves bringing public "outside" pressure to bear on policymakers
grassroots lobbying
a type of outside lobbying

pressure designed to convince government officials that a group's policy position has popular support

ex: AARP
political action committee
gets funds from groups and uses them to support a candidate
objective journalism
based on reporting the facts instead of opinion
signaling role
role of journalists to alert the public to important developments as soon as possible after they happen
agenda setting
ability of media to influence what is on people's minds
common-carrier role
role of media to provide political leaders a channel through which to communicate with the public

helps both leaders and the public
watchdog role
role of media to expose any official who violates accepted legal, ethical, or performance standards

imposes checks on those who hold power
public representative role
role of media as spokesperson for and advocate of the public

obstacles: media not subject to level of public accountability require of a public representative; representation requires a point of view and they cannot be objective
2 types of employees
partonage
civil service
patronage employees
appointed by president

hired based on political connections more than job skills

lasts 3-8 years
civil service employees
career bureaucrats

hired and promoted based on skills

lasts about 20-30 years
sources of presidential power
presidential popularity
unified government
appointment power
budget power
control of information
common law
based on norms and traditions of socieety and judicial precedent

flexible--adjusts easily to changing circumstances
codified law
statutory law

laws passed by legislature and written down and made available to all
two types of legal systems
adversarial system
inquisitorial system
adversarial system
2 advocates (lawyers) present competing voersions of an event

and impartial body (jury) decides whic hstory is true

separate impartial body (judge) makes sure rules are followed
inquisitorial system
judge acts as an investigator digging through evidence and seeking witnesses in order to discover the truth